Fairwood
by daapatemysoul
Summary: Kagome is a workaholic fashion designer living in Las Vegas. Sesshomaru is a business man, driving his top two executives crazy with his overzealous work habits. Friends decide intervention is necessary. Blackmail, kidnapping, buttgroping, and chaos.
1. To Design

EDIT: This chapter was not originally beta'd. It since has been and is now being replaced. Thank you, Maq. All remaining mistakes are mine.

A/N: So, I haven't written a thing in years. Waaaay back in the wondrous land that was high school, I wrote a pair of Gundam Wing fics that now make me want to cry as they are poorly written in my estimation. In those days, my trusty green note book went everywhere with me and was the original bearer of all my musings. These days, I am 4 years into college and completely in love with my faithful (and 4 year old) dell laptop. Gypsy is amazing. An oddly interesting, and yet simultaneously boring, co-op job has led to my random musings being poured out on my personal hard drive. I figure, they want me to only work when on the clock, they ought to let me use one of their computers. Pooh on them. This fic came to me. I have no clue how it shall end, how long it will be, or how often I'll be able to update. School owns my soul- year round ya'all. Life just sucks like this. I hope to update anywhere from every other week to once every two months. If it gets to two months, it's because school quarters are 10 weeks long. I am hoping to get a back log of chapters not yet posted so you never go that long without an update. This fic is rated for future chapters and I promise future A/N's will be much, much shorter.

Disclaimer: I don't own a damned thing. If I did, that 24,000 a year tuition and new car would be much, much easier to swallow.

Sunshine glistened on the water, sending golden ripples across the surface as the waterfall hit the small pond. Small rainbows danced where the fine mist of the secluded waterfall encountered the brilliant rays, never staying in one spot long, making the whole area look as if it were enchanted by a woodland fairy. Adding to the illusion were the stone benches sitting around the edge of the pond, delicate carvings of vines and flowers in all stages of bloom racing over the legs, stretching towards the seat, making the granite slabs seem to light to support a person. Small trees, heavy with blooms in all shades of brilliant pink stood like sentries, guarding the fairy garden in the warm spring air. Pale green was everywhere as flowers pushed their way from the earth and the soft grass fields waved in the occasional puff of wind, not quite ready for the first cut of the year.

A slim woman sat on a bench in the niche with the waterfall, staring out at the rest of the park. Pure black hair, so soft and shimmering it looked to be blue at times, fell in gentle cascading waves down her back to play with the hem of her shirt. Artistically cut bangs flowed over her forehead, partially obscuring her right eye from sight when they escaped from being tucked behind her ear. Her blue and silver dress, cut to be reminiscent of the kimonos of Japans past, brushed her knees as she stood to slowly walk around the waterfall, her luminescent silver eyes taking in every detail. The wide sleeves danced about her elbows and the tails of the wide blue belt, covered in bold silver embroidery, flowed as the wind picked up, the playful spring breeze swirling around the niche.

She paused at the edge of the waterfall's domain, peering from between the trees to where the sounds children's laughter tinkled on the wind. The creak of swings, the sounds of little feet running and climbing, the groan of an old slide, all drifted with the laughter to the waiting ears of the small woman. She closed her eyes and wrapped her hands around her middle, the pain nearly overwhelming her.

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"Kagome! Thank the gods you're back! The editor of Vogue just called, he's wondering about the fall collection. Also, that university from Cincinnati is still on hold on line 3; they've been holding for an hour now. They really want you to come do that guest lecture thing and help with the senior fashion show."

"Kagome, oh thank goodness! The pink fabric we had made just got here and the gold it in is all wrong! There's nowhere near enough and it snags-"

"Girly, I thought we were doing lunch? Where did you go?"

Kagome sighed and held up her hands for silence. She pointed to the first woman to speak. "Call Vogue- not for two more weeks. The University needs to e-mail me more information." She turned on the second woman, her flashing gray eyes barely glancing at the fabric. "You're right, it's wrong. Send it back. And the next batch had better not be so sheer, nor should it snag like that!" The last sentence was yelled over her shoulder as she turned and paced towards her office. The last of the women to greet her entrance to the fashion design office feel in step with the petite designer, taking her temper in stride. They had, after all, been friends for the last ten years.

Sango followed Kagome into her office and shut the pale pine wood door behind them. The walls to the rest of the vast revamped warehouse that housed the fashion haven were painted a pale pink, covered in a pattern of white sakura blossoms. Vast windows overlooked the streets of the bustling city outside, tinted to let the world in without letting them see a thing. The windows were draped with bright red sheers, pulled open to let in the sunlight and only closed during the dark nights when the bustling business finally lay silent. A metal and bamboo desk dominated one corner, with the metal frame full of stylized flowers in bloom and flowing vines. The large, sturdy slab of bamboo that covered the top was startlingly modern in contrast with its sharp lines. A state-of-the-art computer, complete with wireless keyboard and mouse and a full speaker system took up one corner of the desk. The rest was covered in drawings and fabrics. Across the room lay a seating arrangement of overstuffed chocolate brown chairs and loveseat set up around a low coffee table that matched the desk. Bamboo floors shimmered underfoot, the brilliant sunlight streaming in through the windows bringing out their gold highlights.

Sango plopped down in one of the chairs, sinking into its comfortable embrace, and propping her feet up on the table. Kagome took the chair opposite her friend and mirrored her friends pose.

"So? Lunch? We going or not, girlie?"

Kagome chuckled. "It's only just now noon, Sango. Did you skip breakfast again? Really, you ought to know better. It's the end of the quarter. You know, that wondrous time were we all pull all-nighters and work like loons to get out the next collection to producers and magazines on time? You've only worked here with me since we opened the place."

"Gah. You people and your obsessive sewing." Sango shuddered and pulled a face. "I don't see how you people do that all day. Give me some numbers and a bunch people to order around and I'm quite happy. Which reminds me; I went ahead and fired that errand girl, Katrina. She was two hours late again and since I know you despise that sort of laziness and there are girls world round who would kill to work for you, I got rid of her."

Both women stood by unspoken agreement and grabbed their purses from their perch on the grand desk. Sango led the way out the door, and towards the building entrance. She paused at the front desk to inform the receptionist that they were going out and would be back in an hour and a half. As the business boss and creative genius slipped out for a lunch that didn't some from a microwave, the pace of work inside the posh warehouse picked up even more, everyone desperate to prove their worth in one of the worlds fastest growing fashion enterprises.

The sounds of flirting, gossip, and wheeling and dealing drifted through the air at the open air café. Despite common opinion that Las Vegas was only good for gambling, beyond the glittering lights of the strip lay a thriving metropolis, one that was quickly growing and quite friendly to a business growing faster than it could keep up with. It had seemed the perfect place to set up shop after Sango and Kagome had graduated from college. Despite having plenty of practical experience upon graduation, thanks to their universities intense 5 year degree programs that included a year and a half of co-op experience, they had been told they were crazy to starting their own business right away. In the beginning, it has been only the two young women, both barely 23, and desperate to prove to themselves, each other, and the world that a pair of women from a small town in Japan could make it in the intense world of fashion. Now the offices of Sakura Fashions employed 29 people and counting. Aides, errands girls, under-designers, seamstresses, tailors, and an accountant filled out the other 27 current employees. While many of Sakura Fashions' clothes were produced for high end stores only, a select few were made for mass production and sale in stores that the lower middle class could easily afford and enjoy. The business was currently valued at over a million dollars- a long way from the struggles Sango and Kagome had faced 7 years prior just to get a loan to open their doors.

The two stylish young women made their way to a table near the fence that separated the seating from the side walk. Putting down their trays, they both laid a napkin across their laps and tucked into the delicious salads the small café specialized in. Fresh baked crusty bread accompanied the gourmet bowls of greens, chicken, and strawberries tossed in vinaigrette. Sango took a huge bite of her salad and, closing her eyes, groaned.

"Now that," she gestured at her bowl with her fork, "means spring. Forget having to cut your grass, the blooming flowers, any of it- spring is really ushered in by the arrival of the Summer Special and its delicious strawberries."

Kagome laughed, the pure, rich tones turning a few heads- nearly all male. Sango sighed, envy getting the better of her. Despite being gorgeous, gifted, and always fabulously clad, Kagome never noticed the hungry looks the male half of the population seemed to be intent on sending her way. For Kagome, life had always been about proving herself. Her mother and grandfather had not been very happy when she had decided to go to America for college, instead of staying in Japan. Her grandfather was obsessively worried that she would forget her roots, her culture, and become "one of those crazy Americans". Sadly, that was direct quote. To say he was unhappy about her decision to stay in the States permanently would be the understatement of the century. Her mother's worries were more for her daughter's safety and well being and likely would have been the same had Kagome moved to a large city such as, heaven forbid, downtown Tokyo. Kagome figured her mothers worries would disappear with time, as Kagome proved to her time and again that she was fully capable of making her own decisions and surviving the consequences. Her grandfather, however, likely would never be fully happy until she moved home and married the man he picked out. He didn't object to her career, he simply felt she ought to have children by now. He was finally coming to accept her choices, and even occasionally could be heard bragging about his granddaughter. "the world's best fashion designer".

"Sango, really, what would I do without you?"

"Does that mean I get a raise this year? We do have the money in the budget, you know. Well, if we didn't invest nearly every penny of our earnings into hiring more people and growing the business."

"Honestly, girl. We're only just turning 30, and while we're not taking home huge salaries, we are paying into our retirement funds well. So what are you so worried about? You know as well I do that investing all that money now means we could be rich in 10 more years."

"I know, I know, but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy grumbling about not being rich while I'm young enough to enjoy it."

Kagome chuckled at her friend, then turned her attention back to the people hurrying up and down the side walk, mere inches from where she ate. She loved to watch people- it was where her best ideas always came from. Seeing the way they moved, how they sat, stood, walked, ran, all of it, gave her inspiration. Inherent in all clothing was the fact that it restricted movement in some way or another. By creating garments that gave back some of the movement, her designs had gathered international attention.The dress she herself wore was designed to allow for free movement of the arms and shoulders. This made it easier for her to spend hours drawing, or sewing. Conventional dress shirts that buttoned straight up the front restricted arm movement and to Kagome this felt like her creativity was being boxed up and locked down.

The two women finished their lunches, alternating between chit chat and people watching. Kagome watched for inspiration; Sango watched to gather ideas for marketing and business strategies. Movement told a complex story of a person's thoughts and feelings. The more people she watched, the better idea she had of current moods and trends. Her ideas and marketing plans were as large a part of the businesses success as Kagome's colorful creations. Most designers were not, after all, business people.

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Sunlight poured in from the floor to ceiling bank of windows, the view of downtown New York City scarcely obscured by clouds. Here on the 80th floor, not much aside from birds showed up in the views from the massive windows. Deep grey paint covered the two walls of the giant corner office that weren't solid glass. Blood red curtains stood half open to keep the light from blinding the men gathered around a coffee table, sipping scotch and debating a business deal. For these men, wheeling and dealing was their very blood, their only passion. It wasn't about the next dollar, nor even the next million (for many of those present were millionaires); instead, it was about the thrill of the hunt, the exaltation at the closing of a difficult deal, the joy of a perfectly worded contract. Law and finance were their playgrounds. Congress listened to their wishes and the President was on a first name basis with two of the men present.

The clear leader, however, of the men was the one with pure white hair. It was the color of a moonbeam as seen in the open plains of the Midwest, unclouded by pollution and pure in its brilliance. The color of his hair would have suggested age, as would the deference shown to him by the employees who floated in and out of the room, but the idea of advanced age was belied by the his straight back and muscular build. The aura that radiated around him was one of power, and he was clearly used to being obeyed without question.

"Kevin, I understand you are hesitant to invest 1.5 million. However, if we don't get an answer from you in the next hour, we are going to have to proceed without your involvement."

"Sesshomaru, sir, I must hear back from my business partner first. Our agreement states that neither of us invest more than 500,000 without the others full and complete agreement. He is in India at the moment, and likely not awake."

Sesshomaru took a sip from the glass tumbler in the right hand, amber liquid sparkling and complimenting the pure amber flecked gold of his eyes. "Then I suggest you wake him up. One hour. No more."

Kevin got up from the black leather chair and, placing his tumbler on the glass toped table in between the two chairs, turned to leave the room. He dialed his cell phoneand pressed it to his ear before he crossed the threshold and slipped into the hallway.

A third man sat across from Sesshomaru, ignoring his glass and instead, silently watching everything unfold.

"You know he's not going to be able to get a hold of his partner in one hour. It's only 3 am there right now."

"I know that very well, Miroku. I am hoping to force him into making a solitary decision."

Miroku shook his head slightly, his black ponytail dragging over the collar of his black shirt. "That would break up the partnership. I've read their business contract- what you're suggesting is forbidden. Without his partner, he doesn't have the one and half million we need from him to finalize the building deal."

Sesshomaru merely raised a single eyebrow and smirked.

"What are you refusing to share?"

"Miroku, my dear friend, you ought to know better by now, really. He's always hiding something." Both Sesshomaru and Miroku turned to look towards the windows, where a six foot tall man with long silver hair and brown eyes with golden highlights stood lounging. He turned from the windows and paced over to where the two other men sat, and fell sideways into one of the chairs with a plop, his feet hanging over one armrest and his head resting on the other.

"Inuyasha, you baka, could you at least pretend to be civilized? You're destroying the integrity of the chairsitting like that! At this rate, this who place will have to be refurbished as often as your office is!"

"Shees, bro, think you could calm down? So, what are you hiding this time, anyways?"

"If you're that interested, research our potential business partner yourself. You could occasionally do some work around this place. Or I could always get rid of you."

"You know I'm stuck here. Dad said so. It's just bad he put you in charge!"

As the brothers bickered in a time honored routine of dominance and pettiness, Miroku decided to do something worthwhile. He slipped over to the desk in the corner and hit the space bar, waking up the screen. Typing in Sesshomarus password (which his boss had no clue he knew), he began to search through the open documents, finally coming across the one that contained shorthand notes of all the research done on Kevin Gotz. He hummed in satisfaction when he finally found what he was after.

"Gotz just inherited 17 million. He has the money to make this deal as an individual, instead of as half a team."

Mirokus interjected finally forced the brothers to stop fighting- mostly because it left Inuyasha so distracted.

"Wait, what? How did he inherit that much?"

Miroku scanned through the notes. "Says here his great-aunt died. Had no clue she existed until she left him a bundle, and a house in the Alps."

"Monk, cease your use of my computer. I suppose I need to change the passwords- again."

Miroku looked towards the door hurriedly. "You know people don't believe in monks and demons, Sesshomaru. What if Gotz had heard? He'd think we're all crazy."

"But you are crazy, so I don't see what the issue is."

"Thanks, Yasha, you're such a good friend." Miroku sighed, and moved back to the seating arrangement and away from the computer.

Sesshomaru held a single, elegant hand in the air, signaling for the friends to cease their bickering so he could listen. "Gotz is returning."

The door pushed open soundlessly, and the dejected looking Gotz slipped back inside. From the hang on his head and the soundless sigh that escaped his lips, it was obvious he had been unable to get a hold of his partner. Despite having the money to do the deal alone, doing so would mean the destruction of the partnership that had served him so well the last 10 years. Neither man had had the money to make major investments on his own, but the massive investments people like Sesshomaru demanded was what they both needed to take their wealth to the next level. So they had joined forces, and money, and together had doubled their yearly incomes. This plan of Sesshomarus was a once in a lifetime chance. The likelihood of success was high, and the initial investment could be doubled. If he invested on his own, from his inheritance, he would forever be a force to be reckoned with and he would finally have enough to start deals, instead of being brought in on others deals to round out the last million. But if the investment failed, he would be without a partner, jumping at whatever petty contracts came his way. Ditching one's partner and having the scheme fail was a mark of an idiot and it would ruin his prospects. He had arrived at a decision, though, after spending 50 minutes pacing and thinking frantically.

"Sesshomaru, I would be honored to participate in this business venture. My partner… will not be involved."

"Good. I'll have my secretary send you all the necessary paperwork and this deal will be finalized by tomorrow evening. It's nice to have you on board, Kevin. Shall we go to dinner to finalize the plans?"

The other men all nodded their assent and soon the group was seated in one of New York's finest restaurants. After a 5 course meal, a few bottles of good wine, and a long discussion covering the deal as well as current events, Kevin said his good byes to the group and left. He needed time to think over the monumental decision he had made.

After Kevin's departure, Sesshomaru turned to Miroku and Inuyasha to discuss other business dealings they had going on. Plans were made for the group to fly to California to spend a week at one of the hotels the corporation owned and perform spot checks at the companies in the area. Or so Sesshomaru thought.

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A/N2: Please review and send all thoughts and feelings, be they good or bad. Explain either way. Oh, and I'm prone to skipping words and bouts of bad grammar. Anyone want to volunteer to beta? Just put your email in your review and I'll get back to you. This fic will be posted on ffn and Single Spark. The lemons will only appear on SS (the fic hasn't told me yet that there will be lemons, so I'm telling the fic that instead. ) My muse is insane, ignore her.


	2. Sleepy demon

Disclaimers: I do not own Inuyasha. Nor do I own any of the movies mentioned. I hardly even own this computer, since she's dying before my very eyes.

Sesshomaru boarded the plane, anticipating a nice flight, full of work. His secretary was not coming along on this trip. Instead, Kaitlin was to stay in New York and finish the necessary paperwork for the merger his corporation and other investors, including Gotz, had in the works. Within a few short weeks, the investment would be parceled off and resold, hopefully doubling allof the initial investments. He wrote a note to himself as he walked up the steps and settled in one of the overlarge, comfortably soft leather chair.

The plane was clearly a wealthy mansman's toy. The plush carpet underfoot was so thick that footsteps were inaudible. The front room, that whichSesshomaru now occupied, was a collection of oversized, overstuffed chairs and a matching couch. A large flat screen TV graced one wall. It could be hidden away in a special made rosewood cabinet when not in use. The end tables and other cabinetry were done in matching hardwood, brushes with steel accents. The family room gave way through double pocket doors made of rosewood into a bar area. The bar had its back against the wall opposite the bar areas entry. A granite slab of pure black stone, shot through with brilliant flecks of sparkle was reminiscent of the night sky. An impressive array of bottles was locked in a specially made cabinet behind the bar. There, they were kept at the correct temperature and pressure and were fully protected from the bumps of take off and landing. The room also contained a dining table of deep rosewood inlaid with the palest of pine accents in a pattern of a crescent moon surrounded by sakura blossoms. There were one-of-a-kind pieces of art on the walls, and a door that blended in with the back wall was partially opened to reveal a bedroom beyond.

Miroku and Inuyasha boarded the plane right behind Sesshomaru and settled into chairs in the family room with him, snapping on their seat belts in preparation for take off. They had already talked with the pilot and as he was a long time friend of theirs, he had readily agreed to their plan. Now he only hoped he didn't get fired. The pilot's voice came over the intercom, telling the gentlemen they were ready for take off. Sesshomaru reached down and buckled his seat belt without ever taking his eyes off of his papers. Miroku just shook his head in disgust. Inuyasha was already preoccupied with the remotes for the TV and DVD system.

"Ohhh, hey, Miroku, we have "Blades of Glory" on here!"

"We just watched that a week ago. How about some 'Lord of the Rings' or 'Star Wars'?"

"I'm so far beyond burnt out of sci-fi and fantasy. I want action."

"So pick something actiony."

Miroku stared at the white haired figure next to him. "'Actiony' is not a word."

"Sure it is."

"No, it is not. Try again."

"Silence!" At the loud roar from Sesshomaru, both men fell silent and looked guiltily at each other. Thankfully, at that time, the intercom came back on as the pilot announced they were close to cruising altitude and were free to move about the cabin. The two men hurriedly undid their seat belts and bolted for the bar area, remembering to shut the sliding doors behind them.

Inuyasha moved straight for the bar. Unlocking the liquor cabinet, he pulled out a bottle and quickly poured two glasses. Handing Miroku his glass, the two men slid onto the red leather topped stools in front of the bar.

"Do think he'll figure it out, Yasha?"

"Nah. I plan on serving him his favorite drink right about the time we change course. Hopefully, he'll be so busy working, and then sleeping, he won't notice. You did get the 'medication', right?"

"Yes. It wasn't easy to come up with a reason I needed to knock out a very powerful inuyoukai for 3 hours, but I managed to get it. Being a monk has some advantages, I guess." Miroku smirked. "Other than the hot chicks, that is."

"You never get hot chicks."

"Yes, I do."

"No, you get restraining orders from hot chicks. Big difference."

The two men stared at the cabinets behind the bar for a minute.

"Want to play some cards?"

"You find cards, I'll find paper to keep score."

Settling in at the dining table off to the side, they began an intense game of Rummy 500, or Rummy 1000 as they often played on long plane flights. After about 2 and a half hours they both stopped, looking at each other, an expectant, excited look in their eyes**.**

"It's time."

Inuyasha stood up, went to the bar and carefully prepared a cup of sake for Sesshomaru. Miroku came over and pulled a small vial from his pocket, held it up to the light and shook it lightly. The clear liquid swirled in the lights from the bar area, picking up on the blue color of the glass shades. With a grin, he uncorked the bottle and put exactly two drops into the cup sitting on the counter. The men held their breath for a moment. The added drops writhed on contact with the sake, turning blue as they mixed. As the two liquids mixed, the blue color vanished, leaving behind a seemingly normal cup of sake. The half-demon and the monk smirkedat each other, looks of pure evil and mischieflighting their eyes. Miroku picked up the cup and moved towards the door, slid it open, and walked into the main space of the plane. He gently nudged Sesshomarus shoulder and set the cup on top of a file that lay before the demon.

Sesshomaru looked up at the monk. "I did not request a drink."

"No, you did not, Sesshomaru-sama, but I figured we had been flying for a while and you had had nothing to drink."

With a swirl of his perfect silvery-white hair he bent and sat his laptop on the floor, then moved his folders to the side. Leaning back in his chair, he grabbed the cup of sake and put his feet on the table where the cup had been sitting a moment prior. He downed the sake in one go and handed the empty cup Miroku, then snatched the TV remote and tuned into a satellite news program.

Miroku turned and walked back into the back room where Inuyasha waited with baited breath. They stood and watched as Sesshomaru's aura flared for a brief moment, then the demon completely passed out. Inuyasha snuck forward and poked his older brother firmly on the arm, half expecting him to wake up and attempt to remove his head for daring to touch him. When nothing happened, he smacked his brother- hard. Still, nothing happened. He looked at Miroku, Miroku looked at the slumbering demon, and the two men cheered.

"It worked! I can't believe it worked!"

"Yasha, Yasha, you doubted me?"

"Well, yeah. Duh. That's what 20 years of friendship does."

The two men settled in to spend the rest of the flight watching their favorite movies, cheering at the best parts, booing at the sections they dislike, and generally making the sort of noise that would have meant a beheading had Sesshomaru been able to hear or see.

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"Kags! Take a break, already."

A simple grunt was the only reply over the noise of the sewing machine going full tilt. Kagome hadn't moved away from the machine in three days except for sleep and she was only going home for 5 hours a night. Sango was convinced it simply wasn't healthy be to that obsessed with work. She knew Kagome had pulled similar hours through college, but really, did she still need to do that? She knew she had to pull her away, and soon, or the poor girl would end up working through the night.

"Kagome!"

"Huh? Wha..? What time is it?"

"It's 8pm. You need food."

"No, no, I'm fine. I just need to finish these next 3 seams, and hem this dress, then-"

"No."

"What?"

"No." Sango sighed and sat on the edge of Kagomes desk, next to the piles of fabric covering all of the surfaces. "You need to eat. Do you remember the last time you did this? You passed out from exhaustion and had to spend three days in the hospital."

"Only because my doctor doesn't trust me-"

"Rightfully so. Now, we're leaving, and getting food. And tomorrow night we're leaving here at 4 in the afternoon." Kagome started talking and Sango slapped her hand over her mouth. "You have seamstresses who work for you. Let them do the hemming and seams. Your designs are done, let your people do their jobs and finish this off. One late night won't kill them and everything will be done when you get in the next day. We will go to the casinos, instead, and you will get drunk and relax. No arguing. You. Will. Go."

Kagome sighed and gave in. She knew when to recognize that there was no getting around her friend. One night away wouldn't kill her, but she would spend the whole night fretting about her clothes and designs. School had been her life for five years; now her business took its place. She let Sango unplug her machine and turn off her computer. The light boards were switched off next, the sketches in front of them going dark. Sango grabbed the back of her chair and pulled her away from the fabric, ignoring the small moan of loss that came from her friend. She pulled her up, grabbed hold of her shoulders, and pushed her towards the door.

Within twenty minutes, the two friends were seated in a pizza place down the street, a plate of breadsticks in front of them as they waited for their custom pizza. Sango dove in to the garlic butter drenched bread with relish, with Kagome following suit, but at a slower rate. Silence reigned as the girls polished off their appetizer and their pizza arrived. It was a unique mishmash of toppings. Half of the pizza was covered in onions, turkey bacon, and spinach, the other half obscured with four kinds of meat, all of the pork and beef variety. Kagome made a face at the meat covered half of the pizza, and happily picked up a piece with extra spinach. Sango waited until she was happily chewing before she brought up the topic of the next night. Ten minutes in, the conversation still sounded the exact same.

"I'm telling you, a night at the casinos is just what you need! We've lived here for seven years and you've only been there four times- the most recent of which was two years ago. You need to get out for a night. Wear one of those stunning dresses you make and go have a good time."

"Not going." Kagome was no longer bothering to answer in complete sentences.

"You've left me with no choice…" Sango sighed, completely unable to believe she had to bring out the big guns to get her friend to take a night off. "If you don't go with me, I'm calling your mother and telling her you're ill."

"You wouldn't!" Kagome's outburst was loud enough to draw attention from the surrounding tables. "You know she'll be on the next plane over! I can't deal with deadlines and a crazed mother who keeps trying to set me up with 'nice Japanese boys'!"

"Then…?"

"Fine. I'll go, bitch."

"Proud of it. Bring a glamorous dress, heels, and makeup to work tomorrow. We'll get dressed there and head straight to the strip!"

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Groaning, Sesshomaru opened an eye and quickly closed it again. The light hurt. His head felt like a thousand jackhammers were going at once inside his skull. It was not a feeling that made him at all happy. Not to mention demons almost never got headaches. Wait… where was he? This was not the plane. The lights on there were warm and he had left with them on full bright. The cool lights in the room he currently occupied were low. He took stock of himself. Laying flat on his back, whatever he rested on felt soft. He dragged a hand across its surface. Cotton. High thread count Egyptian cotton, to be precise**. **The room smelled of humans. Clearly, wherever he was, humans had come and gone a lot in the past, but none in the last 24 hours. He slowly opened his eyes again, this time bracing himself for the lights. The ceiling was blocked from his view by a swath of pale grey fabric. Turning his head the left, he noticed a wood pole running towards the ceiling. A canopy bed? He slowly sat up and looked around. The hotel room was clearly high end. The bed on which he lay was made of pure cherry, hand carved. The grey velvet of the canopy was high quality. Thick grey carpet lay underfoot. The large room also contained a dresser and chairs made of the same velvet and cherry.

He swung his feet off the side of the bed and slowly stood. As he tried to stand, the room swayed for a moment, forcing him to grab onto the bed post. He could not figure out what happened. He was a demon! He had drunk entire distilleries in the 1400s and not felt like this. He had battled entire legions of demons and never lost track of his environment for a moment. So how had he gone from being fine on his plane to barely able to stand in this hotel room? The last thing he remembered was Miroku bringing him his drink, and then…

Inuyasha. That's it! His brother had drugged him! But how? Poisons that worked on humans wouldn't phase a demon. And no demon would go around buying poisons for demons. The only one he could even think of was only available to monks and mikos for subduing enemies. Miroku. They were dead. He would make sure of it. His eyes glowed a bit red around the edges and his nails glowed green in the slightly darkened room. Yes, revenge would be sweet. But first, he needed to finish recovering. Food- red meat, and lots of it- would help. He picked up the phone and ordered room service.

Three hours later, he was feeling much better and he had come up with a plan of action. Going along with whatever the idiots had planned for a spell would lull them into a false sense of confidence. Then, well, it wouldn't be pretty. Mental games were always enjoyable when Inuyasha was involved. He often didn't suspect a thing and was easily riled up. Sesshomaru suspected it was because his brother was a hanyou. The human blood in him made him weaker physically and mentally. If his father had not left his mother and gone to the human woman instead, Sesshomaru likely would have stayed a single child. But if the kamis meant for him to have a half sibling, then by the gods, he would torture him as he was sure he was meant to. First things first, find the baka.

Inuyasha and Miroku were comfortably ensconced at the blackjack tables when Sesshomaru found them. They both wore black suites and dress shirts with no ties. Inuyasha's bright green shirt and white hair combined made him stand out, even in the bright lights of the casino floor. Women were standing nearby, entranced as much by him as the money he was so causally gambling with. These women knew Vegas and they knew rich men. If a guy lost three grand on the flip of one card and didn't blink an eye, he was loaded. Miroku, in his more subtle orange-hued shirt and with his darker coloring hadn't attracted as many women, but several still lingered close. His current favorite was the red head with the huge rack and bubble butt that was very barely covered in a skimpy white dress. The white fabric was nearly see-through, which made the dress even better in Mirokus opinion.

Sesshomaru had dressed in a similar fashion to his brother and friend for the evening, knowing that the casino had a dress code. His dark grey Armani suit was set off by a white shirt, with a pattern of red honeycombs on the bottom corner of his untucked shirt. As he drew closer to the blackjack table, he was amazed to realize the men were discussing him.

"Are you sure he'll be fine?"

"Yes. I called the, umm, doctor yesterday evening and he said he had given us the wrong strength of his medication. Since he took too much, it just took him a lot longer to sleep it off than we ever expected."

Sesshomaru was amazed- not that he'd ever let it show on his face. He had slept for a whole day? He never slept longer than three hours a night. He didn't need to. And those extra hours were the perfect time to do business on the other side of globe. Someone was always awake and willing to deal, after all. He didn't think he'd slept longer than six hours at a stretch since 1673. He walked up t the table, slowly and carefully, being sure to keep his aura less noticeable, to keep the men from sensing his presence. He slid onto a stool next to his business partners and waited for them to notice him. As usual, the monk noticed him first.

"Sesshomaru! You rejoined the world of the living again, I see."

"Yes. Whatever came over me appears to be quite gone now."

Miroku and Inuyasha looked at each nervously. He seemed too calm… much too calm. Where were the rage, the threats? Inuyasha had expected to be drug out to alley and thrashed already by this point, so his brother's calm demeanor took him completely by surprise. He was even more astonished when his brother casually set a stack of chips in front of himself and began playing. None of the men noticed that three tables away, trouble of a different sort was brewing.

"Kags! Come on. It's only 10 a hand. It's not the end of the world if you lose a few times. We're here to relax, have fun. Kagome, are you evening listening to me?"

Kagome was not, in fact, listening to Sango. Instead, her attention was locked on the man who had just sat down several tables away. His long, silver hair was pulled backing a low ponytail, secured with a plain black rubber band. From her seat, she could only see him in profile, but that was enough. She had been horridly bored and nervous for the last two hours. She hated gambling as much as Sango loved it. She knew she would never lose more than she could afford; she was much too careful to do otherwise. But really, who wanted to lose money in such a way? At least if you went to a play or concert, you paid x-amount for the ticket and that was that. You might pay for parking, et cetera, but all of that was to be expected. Here at the gambling tables, she never had a clue. She didn't know if she'd make money or lose it, and that made her nervous. Very, very nervous. And she kept losing, which made her even more nervous. So tonight, instead of letting herself be nervous, she'd studied people. The dealer's hands had already inspired a suit. She made a mental note to leave the woman a nice tip as a thank you. But now this new comer had her attention- all of it- despite her losing streak. Even in profile, he was stunning. His features seemed too prefect to be real, from the arch of his eyebrows, to the elegance of his cheek bones. His nose was straight, not pointy or snubbed up like an animals. Then, he turned at looked at her.

Amber. That was the only thought in Kagomes mind for the next few minutes. His eyes were amber colored. They possessed a variety of hues and the color shifted and changed in the flashing lights of the slot machines.

His stare startled him as much as it startled her. He didn't stare at women, let alone human ones. He simply didn't bother. If he wanted companionship, he knew many demons that would do. Nevertheless, they both found it nearly impossible to look away from one another. Sesshomarus taunting of his business partners had ceased, and Kagome was no longer studying the dealer's hands for ideas. Instead, they studied each other. And between all the staring, neither noticed that they both were winning. Constantly. After 6 straight hands of wins, though, someone had noticed the streak.

A pair of men in suits, wearing white shirts and black ties had made their way to Sesshomaru and a third was standing behind Kagome. It spoke to their level of distraction that neither noticed the newcomers. Until, that is, their games were interrupted. At a sign from the pit boss and security men, the two dealers had left Sesshomaru and Kagome out of the next deal. The lack of routine left them floundering for a moment. Then the security men spoke. "Mo boss wants to see you in his office. We don't like cheaters around here."

A/N: I found a beta!! My adorable friend Maq, who writes Labyrinth fanfics. She is not an Inuyasha fan, but she is a grammar and spelling nazi. Any errors that remain after her amazing work are not her fault, but mine.

Also, I am considering moving this fic to only one site. After only one review on ffn and no reviews on the other two sites, I am considering not posting this three times and dealing with three different formats, etc. Thusly, unless I pick SS or Dokuga as the place of posting, there will be no lemons. I will imagine them, smile over them, then not write them. Same as most of my daydreaming. XD The next chapter will appear in all three places, likely for the last time, and I will share my site decision then.

For now, DAAP still owns my soul.


	3. To annoy a Sesshomaru

This fic has been beta'd by my lovely friend Maq. Any remaining errors are all my fault.

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. I do, however, have a Sesshomaru plushie.

Kagome was completely bewildered. Cheating? Her?! She had never even _once_ turned in a paper she hadn't done herself! She certainly wouldn't cheat in a casino. The man in the black suit marched her towards the elevator, not saying a word. Beside her, the white-haired man was also beingpushed to the elevator. His face showed no emotion at all. He stared straight ahead, ignoring the looks and comments from the crowds. How could he not be mortified? Kagome knew she'd never be able to come here again.

The elevator doors opened and the group rode to the top floor. As they stepped off the elevator, Kagome was struck by the sheer feeling of the space. It was nothing like the casino with its bright lights and glitz. The energy here was focused, honed, and work took place with no wasted movement or energy. Noises seemed muted. The far wall glowed, covered entirely with screens that depicted every inch of the casino from multiple angles. Kagome saw Sango pacing back and forth, not far from the table that she had been playing at. She also thought she saw the two men who had been with the white-haired guy**. **She wasn't sure if it was them, as she hadn't paid too much attention to them before her memorable exit from the gaming floor.

"You, come with me. You, go with him." The guards split them up for the time being. Kagome was led into a small, sparsely furnished room. Even in here, there were screens showing shots from security cameras, with the views rotating. She was seated in a chair on one side of a desk, and a security person sat on the other side. The woman interviewing her was not one of the people who had escorted her from the floor.

"Kagome Higurashi, yes?"

"Um, yes. But how-?"

"The cameras. We can get identity matches quickly from a good shot of someone's face. Thanks for looking right at the camera, by the way." The guard smirked.

"I, uh, why.."

"You are here because once a certain Sesshomaru Taisho appeared in our casino and began playing near you; you both began to win," she grunted. "We're not certain what sort of computers you were using to do this, but don't worry. We'll know soon."

"Who?"

"Mr. Taisho. Don't tell me you didn't know his name. I know that's a lie."

"No." Kagome was deeply confused by this point. The man's name sounded familiar, but with the way thoughts were whirling in her mind, she couldn't have begun to say why or how she knew the name.

"The technique you used to win is not an unusual one. The only difference this time is that we can't figure out what clues or signals you were sending. You were appallingly obvious in that you kept looking at each other, by the way. It's rare for anyone to be _that_ obvious. The only reason you lasted as long as you did is because we wanted to figure out the signals. Your winnings will be revoked."

The questioning began at that point. The 'hows', 'whos', and 'whys' came so fast and so often Kagome could barely think straight. She could only stammer through her answers and hope she didn't appear to be a total idiot, or worse, guilty of something.

Across the hall Sesshomaru's questioning was progressing in a very different fashion.

"Mr. Taisho. I'm surprised. We don't see many people who are so obvious with their cheating habits. Why did you do it? Debt? Woman issues? Were you and Ms. Higurashi involved? Is that why you wanted her to take a fall?"

Sesshomaru just stared at the man questioning him, his piercing amber eyes mildly disturbing the interviewer. His mind was working a mile a minute. Ms. Higurashi must have been the woman's name. He wasn't sure what it was about her that had aroused his curiosity so fiercely, but it wouldn't happen again. He would make sure of it. The woman was a ningen. Sesshomaru was above such a thing He also was above answering the man's questions, which was beginning to annoy the security personnel watching through a rather obvious two-way mirror. What he really couldn't figure out, though, was that while they knew his name, they didn't know _who_ he was. It was only a matter of time until they did. With Miroku downstairs and his staff already alerted to the change in his location, someone would soon set this idiot straight. He found himself worrying about the woman before he stopped himself. She was ningen! Obviously, his brain was not working correctly. That potion his brother and the monk slipped him must have affected more than he realized.

SKSKSKSKSKSKSKSKSK

"What do you mean it was all her fault? Your stupid friend shows up, my friend gets arrested, and it's _her_ fault?! Get real!"

"Obviously it was her fault! If she hadn't kept looking at him, they never would have assumed Sesshomaru was trying to cheat them!"

Inuyasha looked on as Miroku and the woman argued. _Sango_, he corrected himself. Her name was Sango. She had introduced herself to him after they had realized their friends weren't about to reappear right away. They had hardly begun discussing ways to get Sesshomaru and Kagome released when Miroku accused Kagome of doing something illegal. A heated argument had begun and showed no signs of stopping any time soon.

"How could you even think- did you just TOUCH MY ASS?!" Sango's anger about being groped pushed her from just wanting to yell into actually screaming- loudly enough to draw attention from the surrounding hotel guests.

Miroku at least bothered to look guilty for about half a second, before he resumed yelling at the petite, raven haired woman. "Why would I bother? It's not like you have much of anything to grope!"

"First you touch my ass, then you tell me I don't have one?" Sango caved to her desire and smacked him hard enough to leave a red hand print on his face. "Bastard!"

Inuyasha had to fight to keep himself from laughing. It appeared that Miroku and his wandering hands had finally met their match. He had a feeling, though, if he laughed, Sango just might try to kill him. Plus, he really wanted to know how his brother planned on getting out of his current predicament, which he would never know if Miroku was dead. Self control had never been his strong point, so he decided to remove himself from temptation.

"I'm going to go up to security and see if there's anything I can do."

"Fine, go, leave me with this heathen!"

"Heathen! Look who's talking, Hentai! You're the one who gropes random women."

"Arg! I give up! You are a shrill, irrational woman. Yasha, I'm coming with you."

"I'm coming, too." Sango looked determined and angry, so Inuyasha decided to allow it. Miroku, however, did not possess such logic.

"You are not coming with us. Sesshomaru is our friend, and we are going to help him."

"Did you forget that it's your friends fault that my best friend got arrested?"

Inuyasha turned and walked towards the elevator, figuring that if the bickering duo really wanted to come with him, they could follow. Sure enough, they fell in step, but never bothered to stop arguing. Insults flew fast and furious until the elevator stopped at the security floor.

The doors slid open silently and a member of the security staff was standing there, waiting for them. "You're with Mr. Taisho and Ms. Higurashi. They're busy at the moment."

What happened next surprised Sango. Inuyasha went from a slouching, bored looking young man to an important person to whom one listened in the blink of an eye.

"Are you aware of just who Mr. Taisho is? No? I can see that you do not. He is the owner of Taisho Corporation, the umbrella corporation that owns Traditional Construction, Taisho Investments, and many others, in addition to owning this casino."

The guard blanched. He left the group alone, while he headed off to verify the silver-haired mans statement.

Sango just stared at Inuyasha. "But... why… how… You're lying!"

"No, I'm not." Inuyasha looked downright cheerful, which irritated the heck out of Sango. "He's owned it for years. Dad passed it down to him when he wanted to retire, then spelled out what he wanted done in his will. Sesh owns it; I work for him as CFO. Been that way for years."

The same guard who had been talking to them opened a plain door on the far side of the room and slipped inside. The room he entered happened to be the one Sesshomaru was in. He quickly walked up the security guard questioning Sesshomaru and leaned down to whisper in his ear. The interviewer just gaped at him. Sesshomaru had to fight back a smirk as he heard the whole exchange.

"Are you sure it's him?"

"Damn sure. We triple checked."

"Why didn't it show up on the first security check we ran on him?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe he just wants privacy?"

"I don't care how much he hates the publicity. What are we supposed to do with him now?"

"Apologize and release him." With that, the guard left the room as quickly as he had come, leaving his comrade to face the apparently uncaring businessman.

"Sir, I am quite sorry. We didn't realize who you were. Of course, we will do whatever is necessary to make things right, Mr. Taisho."

"Oh? Wouldn't doing everything possible to make everything right include double checking before you accuse people of cheating and theft?"

The security guard had no clear way to respond without sounding like an utter idiot and simple looked down at his desk, staring sightlessly at the words on the papers littering the surface. "Once again, sir, we will do all we can to fix this error. Your room will be comped, as will your meals and bar tab during your stay."

"This Sesshomaru is still unsatisfied. Why should I not have everyone involved in this travesty fired? I could certainly comp my own room- it's easy enough considering I own the casino."

"Please, sir, -" The man stopped talking all together as Sesshomaru brushed past him and went into the main room. Spying Inuyasha and Miroku standing by the main doors, he stormed in that direction, stopping with a slight swirl of his perfect white hair. Sango's jaw dropped at the pure perfection standing in front of her.

"Inuyasha, find me the personnel records for this casino, with the security personnel files on top."

"No."

Sesshomaru turned from facing the elevator, which he had been waiting for with precisely concealed contempt, and pinned Inuyasha with an intense stare. "Excuse me?"

"I said no. It was a genuine mistake. You brought this on yourself, you know, with your obsessive desire for privacy. If you didn't cover nearly all mentions of you as the owner of the many corporations you're in charge of, things would be so much easier. Plus, you kept staring at the hot chick. You can't deny that." Everyone turned and glared at Miroku. "What? He did!"

"Speaking of the 'hot chick', would you guys mind getting Kagome out of there?" Sango motioned to the office where her friend was still being held.

Sesshomaru gestured to the man who had been questioning him earlier. The man hurried over so quickly that he stumbled over his feet, prompting the group, sans Sesshomaru, to chuckle.

"Y-yes, Mr. T-tashio?"

"Release the girl. If I am innocent, so is she. It is appalling you had not already done this. Then find me the manager- I will meet him in his office."

"Yes, sir!" After snapping to attention in an amusing parody of a soldier, he turned and ran from the small gathering. Within a minute of his disappearance, Kagome stumbled out from the small room, her eyes wide and dazed look on her face.

"Kags, honey, are you alright?"

Kagome just blinked at Sango. "Yeah, sure, I'm fine." She wavered a bit on her feet, then fainted dead away. Sesshomaru's quick reflexes were the only thing that kept her from becoming fast friends with the floor. He lifted the small woman in his arms bridal style, her long black hair caught between his arm and her back, some of it wispy over his hand and few feather light strands brushing his check. He had to fight a moment's impulse to lean down and inhale the scent of her hair, which was utterly ridiculous as he was a taiyoukai and she was a mere ningen. He promptly stiffened and turned to the two men who were staring at him with matching incredulous looks. He chose to ignore them and instead looked towards Sango.

"You. You were with this wench, yes?"

"You got her in trouble and now you call her a _wench_?! She's overworked, sleep deprived, and she needed was a few hours to unwind. Then YOU show up, she gets in trouble, and now you insult her? No. No way. I won't let you."

"I do not recall making it your choice as to what I referred to this... thing as. Now show me to your room so I may deposit her."

"She is not a thing! And we don't have a room."

"Then where are you staying?"

"We live here- in Las Vegas. We took a cab here tonight."

"You live here?" This interjection was from Miroku.

"Yeah. And now I need to get her home, which is going to be damned hard."

"You will be staying here for the next week."

"Huh?" Sango stared at Sesshomaru.

"I will not be held accountable should something happen to her on her way home. She is obviously a weak woman and prone to fainting spells."

"I. Am. Not. Talking. To. You."

Miroku leaned into towards Sesshomaru. "I think she's angry."

Sesshomaru just gave a cold stare in return. "Go get me a key card to a suite. Now!" Sesshomaru roared when Miroku hesitated. He turned and walked onto the waiting elevator, his lazy gait irritating the enraged inuyoukai further. He returned within a minute, holding a keycard, and motioned to everyone to follow him. The elevator took the odd group to the 42nd floor, and Miroku walked ahead to open to the door to a suite.

The suite was decorated in typical Vegas fashion- plush red carpet, heavy gold drapes, and oversized leather furniture that dominated the sitting area. Small flights of stairs went off from either back corner of the room, each one leading to a half open door. From the gaps in the doors, beds were visible inside. Sesshomaru picked one at random and marched in, pushing the door open with his shoulder as he went. He strolled straight to the bed and deposited the small woman there. As she slid from his arms to the lush surface of the comforter, he felt a sense of loss, which confused him. Why should he feel loss over such a tiny woman? One he didn't know, none the less. He would not pay this aberration any mind, for she was human and beneath him. A niggling thought crossed the back of his mind that he had had to remind himself of her human standing one too many times, but he brushed it off. Thoughts that were not conscious were not worth the time they took to think. He was in complete control of himself- _all_ aspects of himself. He turned on his heel and left the room, determined to never see this odd woman again.

A/N: Sorry it took so long for me to get this chapter out! It is, essentially, finals season at work. XD No really, I'm pulling 60 hour work weeks and that means they be paying me a whole lot of over time- and I work for a government funded institution at the moment. They don't give overtime. o.O So, I'm taking it while I can. Hopefully chapter 4 shall take a bit less time to get out, but don't count on it. The next week is nonstop work as well. But after that is summer break- all 2 weeks of it. Then back to school for summer quarter. Anywho, over break, I should be able to get a back log of chapters set up.


	4. Forced Relaxtion

A/N: Sorry, sorry, sorry!! I finished this chapter about a week ago and had to wait for my beta to return it. I'm so sorry it took so long for me to post. I feel like a bad author. School does own my soul, though. Massive thanks to all reviewers, especially kagome357. I love your work, so it was great to get a good review from you.

Kagome stared at Sango, anger radiating from every line of her posture. "I can't believe it! He gets us arrested, _in his own casino_, and doesn't tell them he owns the place because he _likes his privacy_? Tell me you hit him. For the love of the kami, tell me you hit him. He deserved it, you know. Really. Of all the assholes-"

"Kagome! Calm down." Sango stared straight into Kagomes eyes, her gaze straightforward and honest. "He did get us this room for a week as an apology."

"Apology-shmology. It's not like we can stay for a week, anyways. And really, if I wanted to come to the casinos every day, I have my own house, a nice ranch with all my own stuff in it, only seven miles from here."

"I know, but really, this place is a five star resort." Sango's eyes took on a pleading look, their deep brown depths imploring. "Pleeeeaaase? With a cherry on top? Can we stay, Mom, can we, can we?"

Kagome rolled her eyes at her friend's perpetually silly antics. Even in a situation this serious, she could still act like a five year old. "No. We need to get back to work."

"Not really."

"Oh? And those clothes that pay your bills design themselves, I suppose?"

"Nope. But the fall line is done now. You finished the last mock up from the line yesterday, remember? Now the seamstresses take over. The only thing you'd be doing is overseeing and starting on the winter line. Besides, you need a break and now is the perfect time to take one. Admit it."

"Sango-"

"Nope. I aint leaving. And you're not leaving, either. _I_ have your wallet!" Sango stuck her tongue out at Kagome and ducked when her friend playfully tried to smack her. Her friend needed a vacation, and she was going to make sure she got one! "I already went home and got your clothes while you were passed out,so you have no reason to leave for six more days. Now, go to bed and sleep in as late as you want. Then order breakfast in bed, then it's off to the spa."

Kagome eyed her best friend warily. "Are you ordering me to relax?"

"Damned skippy!"

"Fine." It's not like she had much of an option at this time of night. At nearly 2AM, there was no way she was walking the distance back to her house, and with no money, a cab was out of the question. She turned and trudged back to the bedroom.

By the next morning, Kagome felt much more cheerful. After lying in bed for an entire hour after waking up, doing nothing but read the skankyromance novel Sango had left on her night stand, she had ordered breakfast. The decadent waffles piled high with strawberries, put her in an even better mood and left her ready to face a day of pampering without making a break for the nearest sewing machine. She showered and dressed in a loose pair of khaki cargos that hung off her slim hips and a snug, bright blue organic cotton t-shirt. The quirky saying on the front of the shirt fit her mood perfectly. She smiled at her reflection in the mirror, ran her hands through her hair, pulled it into a sloppy pony tail, then left the room.

Sango was curled up on the couch in the main living area, content as could be, watching Animal Planet on the big screen TV. She looked up when Kagome walked into the room, and beckoned her friend to the couch. Her eyes only left the TV for a second before snapping back to the screen.

"Check this out!" Sango excitedly pointed at the TV that had her so absorbed. "It's this show about dog groomers and their competing for all this stuff. This week, they have to groom Chows, and this crazy chick keeps treating her dog likes he's going to kill her for no good reason."

Kagome just stared at her friend. "You're nuts, you know that, right?"

"Of course I'm crazy. I'm friends with you, aren't I? But really, this lady drives me crazy. I hope they boot her off."

"I'm sure they will." Kagome stated sarcastically. "But don't we have an appointment at the spa in like 10 minutes? At least, that's what the note you stuck in book said."

"What? Oh, yeah." Sango could hardly pull her eyes form the TV. "This lady really needs to get a life!"

Kagome glanced at the screen. She didn't know much about dogs, but the groomer in question had shoved a muzzle on her dog and was acting like he was going to give her radiation poisoning if she came within 10 feet of the animal. "That doesn't seem right."

"Hell, no, it doesn't!"

"Alrighty then." Kagome sighed, her very posture indicating that this was a scene the two had lived out countless times before. "Are you coming, or what? Because, frankly, if you won't let me leave this building, then I want a good massage."

"Fine, fine, I'm coming." Sango pulled herself off the couch and hit the power button on the remote in her hand. The TV shut down with an odd beeping sound that made Sango giggle. Kagome merely rolled her eyes and left the room. Sango caught up to her at the elevator. The spa was located on the 6th floor of the building and took the majority of the floor and a bit of balcony space to house. Everything from mud baths to pedicures was offered, along with 12 different forms of massage. Kagome had no clue what was going to happen, but she wasn't sure she'd like it. Sango always picked out the oddest spa treatments. She sighed and walked through the double doors of the spa, only to stop and stare in shock.

Water. It was _everywhere_. The walls were covered in delicate river rocks, soft and colored in tons of blue, green, and purple. Water cascaded down the walls, the source of the flow completely hidden from sight. A stream wound around three sides of the room, collecting the water from the waterfalls. The stream housed small koi fish, which swam in lazy circles in the two feet of water. A dry wall sat opposite the doors and a bridge went from the doorway to the center of the room, allowing customers to enter. Clusters of chairs sat in the room, each grouping consisting of only two or three chairs. Kagome and Sango crossed the bridge and approached the desk that sat against the dry wall. A tall, cheerful woman with bright, curly red hair smiled at them as they drew near.

"Hello. Welcome to zenSpa. Do you have an appointment, or would you like to make one?"

Sango spoke up. "We have an appointment. For the 'pamper' package."

"Ah, yes, you must be Sango and Kagome." The woman hadn't even consulted the computer in front of her. Sango was impressed with her memory. "Please, come with me." The woman walked out from behind the countertop, her soft white dress flowing around her legs to stop at knee length. "My name is Elizabeth, and I'm the receptionist. Our first stop will be the changing rooms." Elizabeth led a pleased Sango and a bemused Kagome to a hallway with several doors on each side. "In each of these rooms, there is a locker for you to place your clothes in and a robe for you to put on. You will not need any of your clothes today. Enjoy your visit." She smiled serenely and left the two women to pick a room with an "unoccupied" sign on the door.

Kagome sighed and entered the room she had chosen. She came back out a few minutes later and found Sango waiting for her impatiently in the hallway, her robe fitting her tall, slender stature well. Kagome, on the other hand, felt like a drowned puppy in her overly large robe. Then again, her friend had three inches of height on her. Another woman, also in all white clothes, walked up them at almost the exact second Kagome entered the hall, leaving her feeling decidedly off balance.

"If you will come with me, I will take you to your first stop of the Pamper experience." The woman smiled slightly and turned and strolled down the hall at a quick pace. Kagome felt like she'd be dropped down the rabbit hole. 'No wonder Alice acts likes a nutter during the whole movie', she thought to herself. 'She had no clue what was going on.' Her thoughts froze as she entered the next room. There were flat tables in the middle of the room, and tubs of goo sat on a counter top in the corner. 'Oh, kami…' The woman who had led them was joined by a second woman, who entered completely silently. Kagome jumped, feeling decidedly unsettled as the woman came up beside her.

"If you would like to lie down, face up, on one of the tables, we will begin with the skin treatments." Kagome warily eyes the table but went to lay down on the one nearest to her, anyways. "You need to take off your robe, ma'am." Kagome just stared at the woman like she was nuts. Why the heck did she want to be naked? She didn't know anyone present but Sango. While she couldn't have cared less if Sango saw her naked (really, they had been best friends for years and had been roommates in college), she certainly had no desire to be naked in front of these strangers.

"Kagome- Robe. Now." Sango cheerfully reprimanded her friend as she stripped off her robe and lay down on her table.

"Sango-"

"No arguments. You. Are. Relaxing. Now strip."

"But I don't find this relaxing," Kagome muttered to herself as she slowly took off her robe and lay down. No one heard her, though, and the woman who was do her treatment cheerfully introduced herself as Sue and began to slather Kagome's skin with something that felt and smelt suspiciously like mud. She shuddered, lay back, closed her eyes and thought of clothes, colors, and fabrics. If she didn't think about it, she wouldn't be grossed out. She would, however, kill Sango later for this, especially since Sango seemed to be really enjoying herself, if her cheerful humming was any indication.

The pattern of Kagome not liking what was going on and Sango cheerfully enjoying herself lasted through the rest of the mud treatments, facials, pedicures, and the manicure. To be fair, Kagome thought to herself, she normally liked having her nails done, but really, by that point, she was so grumpy it didn't matter at all. She hated being touched so much by complete strangers. And she was much too ticklish to think a pedicure was a good way to spend an hour of her life.

Sango and yet another one of the women in the white outfits led her to a different room. She sighed to herself. 'Please, let this be the last stop' she thought, 'please.' A massage table sat in the room, much to her joy. A good massage was _exactly_ what she needed at this point. Her masseuse walked into the room, and asked her if she had any allergies, and what sort of oil she would prefer. Kagome cheerfully chose tangerine essential oil; she needed a good mood-lifter. She settled in for the massage and soon felt much, _much_ happier than she had all day. 'Screw everything else- this is what relaxing is all about!' Her muscles seemed to melt slowly, leaving her feeling languid and oh, so peaceful. At the end of the hour, she had to be dragged out of the room by Sango. She walked right past Sango and headed back to their room, intent on a nap to keep the happy, relaxed feeling going.

Sango caught up to her at the elevators and pounced on her. _Pounced_. After a massage, she ought to have be calm and languid- but no, she went straight to high energy the second it was over. Kagome sighed.

"Now, to shower, put on a fancy dress, go to dinner, and back to the casino." Sango beamed at her friend.

"No."

"No?"

"No. I am napping."

"But we need to go to dinner! We need to get every penny possible out of the asshole and since our entire bill is being written off, let's live it up!"

Kagome sighed. She knew that happy, puppy expression all too well. She'd never win outright. "Let me nap for an hour, then you can drag me to dinner. But no casino. Not tonight."

Sango smirked, evil plots already filling her head. They went back to room, and Sango turned on the TV, only to promptly ignore it. Her schemes all involved ways to get Kagome back into the casino, and talking to the sexy owner of said casino. Sango had noticed the sexual currents surrounding them as they argued. As far as she was concerned, Kagome need to date more. Heck, to be brutally honest, the girl needed to get laid. End of story. And if it took a hunky bastard of a casino owner to get her to relax, then Sango would make sure it happened. Sango paused, then frowned. As long as that hentai wasn't with him, all would work out perfectly.

SKSKSKSKSKSKSKSKSKSKSKSKSKSKSK

Sesshomaru frowned, but continued forward on his path towards the entrance to the casino. He was going to sit in the corner and watch his employees, find the mistakes they made, then fire them. He still was not appeased that the events of the night before had been handled appropriately. In his estimation, termination of employment was the only correct answer. And being Sesshomaru, he was, of course, always correct.

Inuyasha rolled his eyes as he watched his older brother continue to be a twit. He and Miroku had followed Sesshomaru down from their floor to the casino in hopes of making him lighten up. Miroku thought they ought to find him a good demoness to sniff around. Inuyasha, however, had other plans for his big brother's love life. He had noticed the way Sesshomaru reacted to the small ningen the day before and he thought there might be something there. He planned on throwing them into each other's paths as often as he possibly could. If nothing else, it would make for some darned entertaining evenings. Inuyasha frowned. His plan would only work if he could _find_ the woman. He didn't sense her anywhere on the casino floor. It was early, yet though- she might still be at the shops. He had checked them earlier on that very possibility, but he hadn't found her there. Still, no matter- all women loved to shop. Surely she would be here once she was done buying shoes. This is Vegas, after all.

Miroku suddenly tensed next to him. He followed the monk's eyes and found him staring at the top of a head covered in thick black hair. He glanced at his friend.

"It's _her_." Miroku shook his head, disgust evident in his voice. "You'd think they wouldn't let people like that back in this place."

Inuyasha stared at Miroku.

"What? I don't have a second head or something, do I?"

"Nope."

"Then why are you staring at me like that?"

"Because you're a nimrod. She's a woman, not a thing. A beautiful, smart woman, at that." Inuyasha smirked to himself as he saw his friend's expression turn to jealousy. He was going to enjoy watching both couples come together. "Besides, I need to talk to her."

Inuyasha made it only one step before Miroku grabbed his arm and stopped him. "Why?"

"Kagome- remember? The tiny woman who got arrested with Sesshomaru- she is our ticket to getting the ass to relax. And she's clearly good friends with the woman you so dearly hate."

Miroku eyed the half demon with interest. "You think? You don't really think it could happen, do you? I mean, she's a miko and he's a demon."

Inuyasha gaped at the monk. "What?!"

Miroku rolled his eyes. Since the average population didn't believe in the existence of monks, mikos, or demons, they all hid the attributes that made them stand out. Since Miroku was a well trained, powerful monk who spent most of his time with demons, he was instinctively used to keeping an eye out for these attributes. Inuyashas ability to sense others was much weaker, though, which meant he likely had not spotted the woman's power. Inuyasha thought for a moment.

"Well, maybe he won't notice. After all, they did seem pretty intent on each other last night."

"You might have a point for a change."

"For a change?"

"Excuse me, I need to slip by you- You!" Sango glared at Miroku, completely ignoring Inuyasha presence.

"Why? Do you need to get back to your street corner?"

"Did you just call me a whore?!"

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. Two seconds in, and those two were arguing. At least, if Sango was nearby, her friend Kagome had to be near, also. He carefully screened the crowd around him, and, sure enough, there was the tiny raven haired woman, trying to slip into the crowd, looking thoroughly embarrassed by her friend's behavior.

"Hi."

Kagome startled. She hadn't heard the tall, white haired man approach. He looked familiar… the night before, though, was a fog, hidden behind her exhaustion at the time.

"I'm sorry, you look familiar, but..."

"You did kinda faint not five minutes after meeting me. I suppose I'd be more surprised if you did remember my name. I'm Inuyasha." He held out his hand and Kagome, on auto pilot, shook it.

Suddenly a light lit in her eyes. "I remember you now! You're the one who got us out of that terrible interrogation."

Inuyasha found himself blushing under the gratitude in the small woman's voice. There was something soothing about her, and to receive gratitude from such a kind woman was almost too much. He wasn't sure how he knew that she was inherently a nice woman, but he did.

"I'm happy to have helped, especially since it was my brother that caused the problem." Setting up this woman with Sesshomaru was suddenly the last thought on his mind. He wanted this woman for himself. He smiled at Kagome and was pleased when she smiled back. "Would you like to get a drink and find a table to play?"

Kagome shrugged internally. The man seemed nice enough, and was cute in a playful sort of way. If she was stuck in the casino for a few more days, she might as well spend part of her time with a cute guy. "Sure. Lead the way."

Within minutes, Kagome and Inuyasha were settled in at a baccarat table, her with a daiquiri and him with a beer. They laughed and talked about nothing as they played. Neither was winning much, but that didn't matter when they were having so much fun. Inuyasha reveled in the attention of this tiny, amazing woman. Kagome enjoyed the cute mans sense of humor and his ability to make her laugh. Across the casino, though, sat one man who was distinctively_ not_ enjoying their evening of togetherness.

Sesshomaru's piercing gaze watched them from the opposite end of the room. His claws flexed, then clenched into a fist when he saw Kagomes head tilt back as she laughed, exposing the long, smooth line of her throat. He wanted to bury his face there, and lick the crook of her neck, where her elegant collar bone gave way and the graceful column of her neck began to rise. He somehow knew she'd melt when he did. He paused at his own thoughts. The woman was a ningen! Ningen! He needed to remember this. First, last night when he'd wanted to crawl into the bed with her and hold her close through the long hours till dawn. Then he would wake her up by stoking her into readiness for mating, his calloused hands running over her soft skin. They would spend the morning there in bed. Then tonight, again, his mind ran away from him, once again placing this woman in bed with him. But this time it was his bed, with the gray drapes blocking out the rest of the world, leaving only the two of them in a sensual paradise that he would create. Before he realized what was happening, he was moving across the room towards his brother and the woman.

"Inuyasha." His voice was cold and condescending as he spoke to his brother. His woman was looking at him with censure in her eyes. Wait, _his_ woman? Where had that come from? Still, he felt the need to separate the two, no matter what the cost. "I need your assistance with some work."

"No you don't."

"Excuse me?" Ice dripped from his words, the cold tone making Kagome shiver. She had no desire to spend time with this man, not matter how attracted to him she was. It didn't matter that she wanted to run her fingers through his long, silver hair, or lick his chest, or nibble his ears… wait! No more of that. She huffed, drawing the attention of both tall, striking men. She couldn't help but notice though, that Inuyasha was shorter, and his hair was more white than silver. The pure silver tones of Sesshomaru's hair were more striking. Her mind snapped back to the moment when Inuyasha spoke.

"You don't have any work to do. That's why we're here- to escape work. This is the first vacation any of us have taken in four long years and I plan on enjoying myself."

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes slightly and continued to stare down his brother. He desperately needed to get Inuyasha away, so he could take his brothers place. He wanted the woman to look at _him_ with laughter in her eyes, to relax in _his_ presence. He growled low, under his breath. He knew the human woman wouldn't hear him, but Inuyasha certainly did. Inuyashas eyes widened- there had been a note of warning, and of possession, in the growl. It was the same sort of growl he'd heard males utter when other males approached their mates. Could it be that Sesshomaru's beast instincts felt possessive of this woman already? They had never even spoken. But the mere possibility of such a thing was enough to panic Inuyasha.

He turned to Kagome. "I am so sorry, but I just remembered there is a document I need to send out tonight so we don't miss this merger."

Kagome looked from the younger brother to the older, confused as to what had passed between the two that she had missed in last minute. She smiled at Inuyasha. "Of course. Work comes first."

"Sadly." Inuyasha did indeed look sad to be leaving the table. Kagome felt compelled to say something.

"Would you like to have lunch tomorrow? We're going to be here for a few more days, Sango and I."

"I would love to. I'll call your room at noon." Inuyasha purposely did not look at his brother as he left the casino.

Sesshomaru looked down at the tiny woman so ruthlessly dominating his thoughts with a slight scowl on his face. "He's not serious. He's never serious."

"Serious about what?"

"Everything. If your expecting a relationship with him, don't. He's not capable."

"I flirt with a cute guy and I'm automatically looking for a long term relationship? Do you hold all women in this high of esteem or is it just me?" Kagome was positively seething. First, this man had the audacity to get her arrested the day before. Now, he was making assumptions about her when they had hardly spoken to one another! Ass.

Sesshomaru was also seething. She had just referred to his brother in a positive light. She wasn't supposed to think positively of his moron of a brother. She was supposed to like him. Never mind that he had done nothing yet to assure the woman's positive opinion.

Kagome eyed the still silent man. "I see no reason to stay here and be insulted. I'm going back to my room." She stood and began walking towards the elevators lining the far wall. She could have sworn she was being followed. She turned and saw Sesshomaru standing immediately behind her, his chest only inches from her nose. She was so very tempted to lean into him and nuzzle his chest, to smell him. All men have a unique scent- she wondered what he smelt like. 'Snap out of it, Kagome!' She immediately stepped back one large step and looked up into his face.

"Why are you following me?"

"Your friend is preoccupied." Sesshomaru motioned to where Sango and Miroku sat playing blackjack and glaring at one another. "I will walk to your room to ensure that you arrive there safely."

"I am perfectly capable of walking myself to my room, thank you."

"The men here are drunk and you are beautiful. You cannot walk by yourself."

His words gave Kagome pause- had he really just referred to her as beautiful? Sesshomaru appeared to have just realized what he'd said, also. He looked rather mad at himself at any rate. Kagome shrugged.

"Let me tell Sango where I'm going, so she doesn't worry." Kagome didn't wait for the man's reply. She had no desire to be near him and hoped to lose him in the crowds on their way to Sango's table, or between Sango's table and the elevators. She had a feeling arguing with him would get her nowhere- losing him was her best option. She made it to her friend's side with the silver haired man only one step behind. She sighed to herself- looked like losing him wasn't going to happen either. Then she would ignore him.

"Sango, I'm going back to the room. I have a bit of a headache."

"You want me to come with you?"

"No, no, you stay and play." Kagome noticed the amethyst eyes of the man carefully watching Sango relax. She remembered him from the night before- Miroku. He clearly wanted Sango's presence, whether he would admit it to anyone or not. She smiled to herself and an idea began to form- if Sango was busy with a relationship, she'd have less time to torture Kagome.

"You sure? You know I'd be happy to come up with you."

"No, no, it's not that bad. I just am not a big fan of all the noise in here right now."

"Okay. You call me- I have my cell- if you need anything."

"Yes, mother."

Sango smiled and hugged her best friend. "I love you, you know that, right?"

"Of course. You're the best sister ever."

"I know." Sango grinned, and Kagome returned Sesshomaru continued to follow her, and she continued to ignore him. She entered an elevator, hit the button, and stood with her back in one corner. Her shadow stood in the opposite corner and watched her from half closed eyes. She steadfastly ignored him. The numbers ticked by one the digital display- floor 10, floor 16, floor 21. Two more floors to go. Suddenly the lights flickered and the elevator ground to a halt. The lights went out, plunging the elevator into darkness.


	5. Ode to an elevator

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. If I did, Sessh would never have on a shirt, in the entire series.

Kagome tried to draw a breath, but the panic enveloping her prevented her from breathing deeply. She began gasping for air- the dark. 'I hate the dark,' she thought frantically. The pitch black of the enclosed space pressed down on her. She knew, in the calmer, more rational corners of her mind, that there was nothing bad inthe elevator with her; the only other person on the elevator owned the casino, for kami's sake! Surely they would be rescued soon. They had to be. Her thoughts raced, along with her pulse and her breathing.

Across the elevator, Sesshomaru took note of the Kagomes panicked state. His instincts demanded he calm her. "Are you alright?" The question was horribly abrupt. He knew damned well she wasn't, but his fight to keep his instincts from taking control kept him from gentling his words.

"Oh, yeah, sure, I'm fine. Totally fine." The sarcasm lacing her voice and the hysterical giggle that accompanied it belied her words. Sesshomaru sighed quietly and crossed the elevator to her. He could see outlines and general shapes in the darkness, but no more- even his enhanced sight wasn't enough to see well in the all consuming darkness of the stopped elevator. He paused next to the control panel and fumbled for the call button. When nothing happened, he sighed and continued over to the tiny female. He laid his hand on her shoulder and she jumped, startled.

"Kami! Are you trying to scare me to death?"

Sesshomaru reminded himself he was stuck with her- he couldn't kill her merely for being annoying. Too bad, that; he generally found humans to be annoying. "No. I did not wish to scare you. I assumed you would hear my approach."

"Yeah, well, since you walk about as loudly as a cat, I didn't."

If the lights were on, Kagome would have seen his eyes narrow and his body stiffen. His very posture radiated anger. How dare this woman compare him to a lowly housecat? He was an Inuyoukai, a Taiyoukai, to be precise! He was infinitely better than a mere housecat. Besides, cats were arrogant and cold.He felt he couldn't be nearly as poorly behaved as a _cat_. Kagome shivered under his hand, drawing his attention back to the present.

"You have nothing to fear from the dark."

"Tell that to my subconscious." She shivered again, and huddled closer into herself. "The call button- there's a call button, we need to find it."

"I tried it on my way over here. It's broken."

Kagome moaned, the sound completely devoid of hope. She sank to the floor in her corner and curled into a ball, wrapping her arms around her upraised knees. Sesshomaru hesitated, then sniffed the air. The scent of her fear was permeating the space. He had no clue what triggered her terror, but it clearly was overwhelming her. He sank to the ground next to her and laid one arm across her shoulders. She paused for a moment, then threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around his waist. Sesshomaru had no clue what had just happened. The small woman was now half in his lap, and half out of it, her delicate arms snugly embracing his torso. The feeling of her so close to him immediately aroused his beast instincts. The youkai side of him desperately wanted to draw her closer and pull her firmly onto his lap, comforting her and easing her fears. He fought to control the instinct, to keep the woman where she was.

Kagome sniffled and buried her face in his chest. Sesshomaru could smell her tears. Her body was still tense and her terror was still very real. He sighed, and pulled her slightly away from him, tipping her face up to his.

"Woman, what makes you so fearful?"

Kagomes answer was a mutter, one much to quiet for even Sesshomaru to make out.

"Repeat yourself."

It was her anger at his rough tone that allowed Kagome to answer him in a more audible tone. "It's the dark."

"Why do you fear the dark?"

He felt her shrug. Clearly, this fear of the dark was an irrational one and one that she would not overcome right at that moment. In what he told himself was an attempt to distract her, he bent his head and gently laid his lips on hers. He meant for the kiss to remain light and easy- simply a stimulant to keep her from thinking of the dark. His beast had other plans. In moments, the feel of her lips beneath his and her arms wrapped around his form had his eyes turning red around the edges. He wanted this woman. For two days he had told himself that this didn't matter, that her status as a human meant he would not indulge himself in her presence. Clearly, once the opportunity to be near her arose, his beast meant for it to last.

He pulled her fully into his lap, his arms sliding around her waist. His lips slanted over hers, taking possession of her mouth. Kagome moaned, allowing her lips to fall open. He immediately took advantage of the opening, and slipped his tongue into her mouth. Their tongues dueled for dominance, each struggling to have the upper hand. Her arms unwound from his waist and she slid her hands up his chest, feeling the strength in his muscles. His muscles quivered under her hands and she rejoiced in her ability to make the stoic man_ feel_. He slid a hand under the hem of her dress and slid his palm across her upper thigh, and smirked when she groaned against his mouth. He wished for a moment that he could show his claws. He wanted to run the tips of his claws over her back and have her arch against him in pleasure. Instead, he ran the tip of one finger under the back edge of her silk panties, reveling in the soft skin there. He got the reaction he desired, Kagome arching her back and pressing herself fully to his front. He purred at the feeling of contact, the soft rumbling sound filling his chest.

She struggled to think, and pulled back from his seeking mouth. She never threw herself at men. She had never had sex, either. She rarely dated and never kissed a man she wasn't involved with. It was so difficult to think about all the reasons she shouldn't be in the position she was in as Sesshomaru's lips found her throat, his tongue lapping at her pulse point. Her ability to think rationally was rapidly disappearing, and with it, her desire to think at all. Her mind was as overwhelmed as her body; the sensations rushing through her were completely new and oh, so fascinating. She turned slightly, her maneuver allowing Sesshomaru's hand to slip further under her panties, his palm now caressing the globe of her ass. The new position also allowed her to tangle her hand in his hair, holding his mouth to her throat. Her free hand went for the buttons on his shirt, struggling to undo them, passion making her hands unsteady.

Understanding what it was she was after, he moved his free hand to his shirt front, and brushed hers out of the way. In the space of a breath, he had the top four buttons undone and grabbed her hand and replaced it on his chest, pressing her small palm onto the naked flesh that was now exposed. She wondered at the feel of it, the smooth, silky skin, with the taut muscles lying right under the surface. She dragged her fingers across his skin, her nails lightly scraping him. The light sting of her nails instantly faded, pushed him over the edge. Suddenly, Sesshomaru moved and Kagome found herself lying on her back, held in place by the weight of the large man between her thighs. With one of his hands, he grabbed both of hers and forced them over her head. His other hand roamed her body, grabbing the bottom hem of her dress and pushing it upwards. The silken material pooled around her waist, the rough texture of the carpet on the elevator floor pressed into the bare globes of her butt. Sesshomaru had pulled the sides in; turning the bikini cut lace into a thong in his attempts to get closer to her.

He hooked one finger under the top edge of the dress and pushed it lower, freeing her pert breasts. She was well built for a woman of her petite stature. He liked women with curves that fit their body- too small didn't seem feminine enough, to big just came off as vulgar. Kagome's curves, in his mind, were utterly perfect. He bent his head and dragged his tongue across the left nipple. Kagome arched up, her back lifting off the ground and her hips pressing against his. The bulge of his arousal pressed into her stomach, sending a thrill through her. _She_ had done that. _She_ made him want a single minded intensity

He bent his head to suckle the nipple he had already dampened, his free hand caressing the other breast. He was absorbed in his task, his only thoughts involving ways to get her completely naked and utterly under his control. The earth itself moved with the force of their passion. Suddenly logical thought reentered his mind. The earth did move for something as petty as a moment of passion. The elevator was moving again. He pulled back from Kagome, and she moaned at the loss of his weight. The gold of his eyes flashed red for a brief moment, but he managed to repress it and pull away from the small woman.

"Onna, the elevator is moving. The lights shall be on again in a moment."

Sesshomaru's cold voice invaded the luxurious haze filling Kagome's mind. She scrambled backwards, away from his heat, shivering slightly at the loss. She frantically pulled her dress back into place, blushing as she realized how far they had gone. She had been lost to logic, controlled completely by her feelings.

The elevator returned to the ground floor, called there by the mechanic who had come to free the occupants of the elevators. The doors opened to a cold and composed Sesshomaru, his gold eyes once again hard and uncaring. Kagome looked composed and put together on the surface, but her eyes showed her lack of comfort. The manager on duty came over from a group who had apparently been trapped on a different elevator.

"We are so very sorry for the inconvenience. The power outage blew the fuse to the elevators, so when the backup generator came on, it took a bit to get them moving again. They are working fine now, and you make take any them back up if you want." The manager smiled and shook hands with a tired Kagome. Sesshomaru merely stared at the offered hand with a cold look. The manager stuttered out another apology and slinked off to make things good with yet another group had been stuck on one of the many elevators.

Kagome turned back to the elevators, hit the up button, entered and watched the doors close. A sleek, elegant hand stopped the doors progress. She groaned inwardly- the ass just had to share her elevator again. The kamis hated her. She was sure of it. If the power went again… well, she wasn't sure what she would do, but she was pretty sure there would be men in white coats and strait jackets involved as a result.

Sesshomaru entered the elevator, speared her with a look, then promptly ignored her as the elevator began its ascent.

"How dare you?!" Kagome could no longer control her temper. Her hands were clenched into fists at her sides and anger stiffened her posture. This man's audacity was astounding.

"Excuse me?" His frosty tone was a far cry from the warm, passionate noises he had been making only minutes before.

"How can you kiss me like that and act like a total ass only a minute later?"

Sesshomaru merely stared at her for a moment, breathing deeply. Kagome was convinced he was ignoring her, but in reality, he was drawing in the scent of her arousal, which still permeated the air of the elevator. He, who was so used to having complete and utter control over himself and his emotions at all times, was overwhelmed by her scent. Hiding behind the cold mask he used on a daily basis was the best way to maintain a safe distance from the tiny woman. He feared his beast's reaction to her. He had never been so drawn to a person before and he had no clue what it was about this woman in particular that got to him so deeply. His eyes began to bleed red as his beast fought to take control. The woman was near, his instincts said. Take her. He closed his eyes and stepped back, as if to escape her scent which was laced with her current anger and traces of her lingering arousal.

"Excuse me, but are you going to answer me sometime this millennium?" Frustration colored her voice.

Sesshomaru snapped. He crossed the elevator seemingly in a blur, and grabbed her by the shoulders. He peered into her eyes and she noted, as if through a fog, that his eyes that a ring of red around the pupils. He bent his head and sniffed her throat, then growled low in his chest. Before Kagome could wonder at his odd behavior, his tongue darted out to lick her pulse point. White hot need shot through her body, pooling in her groin, sending her arousal spiking. The scent of her increased arousal hit Sesshomaru like a fist to the gut. He groaned then pulled her close. This time the kiss was punishing, fierce. He was compelled to dominate her. He gave her no chance to respond as his tongue slipped through her lips and took complete control of her mouth. She went limp in his arms, her need staggering. A tiny bud of rational thought fought its way to the front of her mind, though. She pushed against his chest. He ignored her attempt to stop the kiss. She pushed again, harder, and turned her head away to force an end. He merely went back to her throat, licking and nipping his way up to her ear. He drew her earlobe into his mouth, drew it lightly through his teeth.

Kagome shivered with need, but reminded herself why this needed to end. The man was an asshole and a menace to society. She pushed away yet again, even harder this time. "Stop!"

Sesshomaru shuddered and pulled back, fighting hard to regain control over his baser instincts. The ningen was right- there was no reason for this to keep occurring. He would maintain his distance from her- a very large distance. If she wasn't near, then he couldn't lose control. Simple. Now, he merely had to stick to that plan and all would be right in his world.

"I apologize."

Kagomes eyes went big. She already knew he wasn't one to apologize freely- clearly he was still rattled from their embrace. Well, embrace_s_ if she was going to honest with herself. And they were rather incredibly hot. 'No, bad Kagome!' Her own thoughts were trying to turn on her!

"Apology accepted."

The elevator dinged and the doors slid open. Kagome quickly slipped off and all but sprinted down the hall to her suite. As the door shut with a firm click behind her, she slumped against the wood and let out a sigh of relief, safe and sound, in her own room, where no one could bug her. The door rattled behind her and someone tried to push it open. She jumped forward and turned to face the door.

Sango. So maybe Kagome wasn't as safe in her own suite as she had thought. Sango was going to want to know details…

"Kags!" Sango threw her arms around her friend, not bothering to care when Kagome merely stood completely still. She was in high drama mode, and damn it, Kagome not wanting to play along was not to kill her fun! "Oh, thank the heavens, you're alive!"

"As is your ability to be the world's biggest drama queen, apparently."

Sango pouted. "You were stuck in an elevator! Surely that calls for some drama." She huffed and stalked over the couch. In a quick movement, she had kicked off her heels and flopped onto the cushions. She patted the seat next to her. "Come on, sit down, and tell Auntie Sango everything."

Kagome snorted, but sat. "You know, I think I liked you better when you were serious all the time."

"Pish. I was no fun, that's what I was. But now that family stuff is resolved, and the stress of school is gone, life can be fun again. Speaking of fun… How was it?"

Kagome froze, panic sneaking through her. How could Sango know what happened in the elevator already?! She struggled to modulate her voice. "How was what?" Her voice cracked a bit on the last word and she prayed Sango didn't notice.

"Being trapped in the elevator with the sexy casino owner. I heard about it from his brother."

"It was no worse than being trapped in a dark elevator by myself."

"Oh, no! I forgot! It must have been pitch black in there. Are you okay?"

"I survived."

Sango paused for a moment, taking in her friends stiff posture and carefully controlled voice. "Something happened. What was it? What went down with the gorgeous billionaire?"

Kagome stared at her friend in horror. "You don't think he's really worth _that_ much, do you? Dear god, I _yelled_ at him. Screamed even! He could destroy our business, couldn't he? Oh, Sango, what have I done?" She was nearly hyperventilating at this point.

"Kags! Breathe. It'll all be fine, I promise."

"You don't know that!" Kagome's voice had reached uncomfortable decibels by the end of her sentence, startling her companion. Sango slapped her hands over her ears.

"Ow!"

Kagome blushed, slouched a bit, and giggled uncomfortably. "Sorry…"

"Now, why did you yell at him?"

Kagome mumbled a completely unintelligible reply.

"Pardon?"

"I said- he kissed me. Happy?"

Sango stared in shock.

"Sango, say something! Anything! You're scaring me."

"How was it and why didn't you tell me that right away?" The words ran together with the speed of her talking, forcing Kagome to spend a moment deciphering her friend's gibberish before she could do anything.

"It was fine, I guess, and I didn't say anything because I knew you'd freak out."

"Uh-huh. You expect me to believe a man who looks like that kisses just 'fine'? Try again."

"Fine. It was… amazing. Earth shattering. He is a complete and total ass and he kisses better than I ever thought possible. Happy?"

"Yes."

"What? Did you miss the part where I called him an ass? Because he is!" Kagome was starting to look even more decisively unhappy than she had. The whole incident had her incredibly confused. Sesshomaru had made her forget where she was and her fear of the dark. No other man had ever made her feel quite like that, and it left her decidedly off balance. Through college, she had dedicated herself to her studies; she wasn't the world's best student when it came to her non-design classes, and she had worked hard to keep her B average. Between the constant studying and long hours in studio, she hadn't had much time left over to bother with dating. The few dates she had gone on had left her convinced it wasn't worth her while, anyways. She had always been attracted to men in a more vague sense, but there had never been a driving attraction to any one man in particular. Now, though…. Sesshomaru was different. She disliked him- intensely- but she wanted him- just as much as she disliked him, in fact. And this wanting left the particularly confused Kagome particularly yearning to be with Sesshomaru.  
She sighed.

Sango heard the deep sigh and looked carefully at her best friend. This Sesshomaru guy really had her in knots. Sango personally thought that this was a good thing, but she had a feeling Kagome wasn't so sure about that. She decided to leave Kags alone for now, let her fret by herself. Maybe without outside pressure she'd come to the conclusion Sango had already made- that this guy was perfect for her.

"Go to bed. Forget about the guy and enjoy our vacation, okay?" Sango pulled Kagome off the couch and pushed in the direction of her bedroom. "Go. Read. Sleep. It's all good."

Kagome giggled at her friend's orders and complied, still lost in thought about the sexy, white haired man.

A/N: THANK YOU to all my reviewers. You peeps are the reason I still write this thing. Have a cookie. Sorry this chapter was so long in coming. Tis finals season and school is currently telling me when to draw, when to build shit, when to play with wires. It occasionally lets me eat, and once in a while lets me sleep. There is no time for writing. Hence, the shortness of this chapter. I figured this beat nothing, right? Final crits are in one more week, then I sleep for 2 days, then I write again. So enjoy!


	6. authors note

Dear readers,

I know- how rude- I'm posting an authors note instead of a chapter. I figured this was the easiest way to reach all of you, however, and assure you I'm not dead yet.

The story is on a short term break, however. It's not my choice and not through any circumstances I can control. About 5 weeks ago, I went away for part of the weekend and returned home on Sunday night to find my apartment had been robbed. My new, beautiful computer had been stolen. It contained all past chapters of Fairwood along with a portion of the next chapter and 2 half written one shots. Not to mention countless hours of CAD work I'd done for school and work. Most of this had not been backed up yet- the computer was only 5 months old and the school term had just ended.

I've switched back to my old laptop while I deal with insurance to get a replacement, but I had replaced it for a reason. It makes a high pitched whining noise when on for more than 3 minutes. Heck, I had to borrow my parents computer 100 miles away just to write this note.

I'm attempting to get some writing done on the whiny machine of d00m, but it's just not going very fast. And once I do get my replacement computer, I'm not bringing it to my apartment. I move back in with my parents in mid December to start a new school term in January, so I'm leaving the new computer with them in hopes of preventing a repeat theft. These computers are worth over $3,000 since I'm a designer and CAD programs will eat a cheap computer and spit it back out.

This story will resume, and I'd love to have the new chapter done by the first of the New Year. I'd recommend adding the fic to your story alerts list, though, instead of checking back all the time hoping for new chapters.

Thank you for your patient and understanding,

Daapy


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